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Confused about where to go...Singapore/Bangkok/Malaysia

Ive just joined Fodor's and I was wondering if you could help me out a bit...Im staying in Kuwait and Im travelling with my family ( I have a two year old son !! ) to Australia in Jan 2010. My brother-in-law is getting married and we are going to attend the ceremony...Out trip is of a duration of around 3 weeks...So, we're planning to stay for 2 weeks in Australia and on our way back would like to visit Singapore or Bangkok or Malaysia for the remaining one week...But Im kinda' confused as to how which place i should go to and for how long !!!! Can you help me ???

I think it should depend on the airline that you fly, i.e. if you fly an airline that stop in Bangkok then Bangkok is a good choice, but if your airline stop in Singapore(or KL) then perhaps Singapore(or KL) should be considered. You should check as well if your airline will allow you to do a stopover.

Singapore is the easiest place to get around imo. Some say there's not enough to do in Singapore but I don't agree, just need to do the research. Expect to pay double the price you would for similar hotels in Thailand.

Bangkok, hectic, more exotic but can be more of a hassle to get around. Shopping is probably the cheapest of the three, just be careful if shopping at the airport

Malaysia, less hectic and if you don't want to spend your time in a big city then a Malaysian resort would be a good choice.

Do a search on this forum for a trip report about Thailand filed by Bluebelle(sp?). She took a young infant to Thailand and had a wonderful time. Of course, hanuman's advice about which transit city makes perfect sense. I guess he took time off from his job with King Power to concoct his reply.

What a great idea, Cat! Reshmi could spend half of his vacation in airports! Just what he was looking for.

In one week, you could opt for two locations, but with a two year old, you might prefer to stay put for a week. Singapore has lots of family-friendly things to do. The zoo with the night safari, the Jurong Bird Park, Sentosa...

Driving time from Singapore to KL is about 4 hours, KL to Penang is another 4 hours.
Driving time from Bukit Kayu Hitam pass, Malaysia to Bangkok only takes 11 hours.

There is an luxurious Orient Express train between Singapore and Bangkok, it takes 3 nites with excursions in Georgetown & River Kwai.

There is also an overnite train from Butterworth(Penang)to Bangkok Hualamphong station via Hat Yai.
Unlike the regular Thai trains, this train is clean, the conductors convert the seats into bunkbeds for passenger to sleep at nite.

You don't think they should travel with a two year old - that's why you've made suggestions that are ill-advised for traveling with a two year old? Plenty of people travel with small children. WIth good planning it can go well. There are few (if any) cleaner places in the world than Singapore. It's an easy and safe destination with children.

Look at the flight times for the trip, as the distance from Australia to parts of SE Asia may surprise you, and this may not be as convenient a “stopover” as you think. For example, it’s an 11 hour flight from Melbourne to Bangkok, and then about 8 hours from Bangkok back to Kuwait. Much as I love SE Asia (I live here), I would suggest you give consideration to staying in Australia for the entire time, as that is a really beautiful and interesting country and lends itself to a holiday by rental car, camper van or short flights. I know the wedding is in Melbourne, and after seeing that area there is of course Sydney and that whole beautiful area (e.g. the Blue Mountains), Brisbane and the Gold Coast/Great Barrier Reef, an almost endless number of national parks, the wine country in the Margaret River area, and you can go inland to Ayer’s Rock. There is also Tasmania quite close to Melbourne in the south and Darwin in the far north. It will be summer and hot and/or rainy in some places, but overall you could easily and quite happily spend 3 weeks in Australia IMO. (And from Melbourne you actually aren’t far from New Zealand, another great place, although it’s long flight home from there.)

Also look at weather, as Singapore is a bit rainy in January as are parts of Malaysia. In Singapore perhaps this does no matter so much as you are not going to lay out on a beach there (and perhaps you might enjoy rainfall coming from Kuwait), but if good weather is important to you, then you may want to know what to expect. The lovely east coast beaches of Malaysia are not at their best in January and I would say to avoid them.

Otherwise, if you still feel you want to include SE Asia, I agree that whatever place offers you the easiest non-stop flights should be top of the list. I also think you should look at Bali, which is closer to Australia and usually has very good air service from most Australian cities. (A bit on the rainy side there too but IMO that is not an issue for activities in Bal.) I would also suggest you consider Hong Kong, which will be in excellent weather in January and offers a lot to see and do, as well as good air connections from Australia and the Middle East.

I would agree that with a young child you probably don’t want to move around that much. You also need to consider your interests.

Thanks so much for your responses...Since I have a boisterous young one, Im looking to spend some time which would be of interest to him as well...!!!!! And i guess like many have recommended, the zoo...the birdpark etc may be excellent choices...Thanks a bunch...will give you all a detailed report of our trip when we get back...

I was in all three places abouth 8 months ago. Except for Bangkok I found them very boring. Not much to do. I would go to Bangkok because there is a lot to do no mater what your interest. As far as shopping Bangkok is much cheaper and better then the other places.

Hi Reshmi, there's tons to do in Singapore!! There's a world-class zoo (the night safari is not to be missed), fun attractions on Sentosa island, plenty of shopping (3 new malls just opened), a wide range of cuisines and it's a very safe and family-friendly place to visit with young children. May I suggest you visit www.sg to understand more about Singapore and all that it has to offer. It's got all the info you need on where to go, what to see and more. Enjoy your travels!!

I am from Sri Lanka. I would like to share my travel experience. I have travelled many times to Singapore for business but that doesn’t make any sense here.
I took my family to Malaysia and S'pore last year. First we visited Kuala Lumpur (KL Central) next day morning Genting Highlands, a mountain area 1850m above sea level. Place is very green. But the temperature ranges from 16°C to 24°C. (Area is some what similar to Nuwara Eliya in Sri Lanka.)

We took the Cable Car to enter Highlands. It is also an interesting event. We spent the whole day in Outdoor Theme Park. Lot of excitement and fun, but for some events there is an age limit, But all can enjoy.
There are attractive star class hotels in the area, but we came back to same hotel in KL at the end of the day. Night time might be colder for people from warm countries. After a days shopping in KL, We took a Luxury Bus from KL to Singapore. It took about 6Hrs. A double decker bus, very comfortable with Video and Games on each seat. Half way, they stop for refreshing. The area passing thro' is very green.

Again in S'pore in Santhosa Island you can find lot of fun in whole day. Under water world is more interesting place for children, where we are in a glass tunnel in water. It is a live experience for children, to see how fish behave in water.

Also there are lot of places to visit like Zoo, Botanical Gardens etc.

Singapore is expensive, but good law and order, all speak english.
Malaysia, Thailand average.

Shopping is concerned, S'pore / malaysia : electronics and computer cheaper(like in Dubai), Bangkok : Clothing and shoes Cheaper.
Now electronics and computer also cheaper.
You can travel with your baby, but better pre arrange and plan every thing in advance.
Bon Voyage!
upul_gunaratne@hotmail.com